The present disclosure relates to system design and, more particularly, to embodiments of a computer system for system integration (i.e., a system integrator) and a computer-implemented method for system integration, wherein integrated circuit chip selection is reliability optimized and, thereby cost optimized.
In conventional system design, a system integrator selects integrated circuit chips (e.g., processor chip(s), memory chip(s), etc.) for incorporation into a specific system and ensures that these integrated circuit chips function together in order to achieve at least one system-level performance specification and a system-level reliability specification. The system-level performance specification can comprise, for example, a system-level maximum oscillation frequency (Fmax-system). The system-level reliability specification can, for example, be a system-level minimum useful life specification defined as a minimum number of power on hours (POHs) during which the specific system is expected, with a specified probability, to perform reliably (i.e., is expected, with a specified probability, to meet the system performance specification(s) without fail).
Typically, in order to meet the system-level reliability specification, the system integrator selects integrated circuit chips with the highest reliability and, particularly, with a chip-level reliability specification that is at least as high as the system-level reliability specification. That is, the system integrator selects integrated circuit chips wherein the minimum number of power on hours (POHs) during which each integrated circuit chip is expected to perform reliably is at least as high as the minimum number of power on hours (POHs) during which the specific system that incorporates them is expected to perform reliably. However, requiring each integrated circuit chip to meet the same reliability specification as the specific system as a whole may be unnecessary (e.g., because not all integrated circuit chips that are incorporated into a specific system will be powered anytime the specific system is powered on) and costly (e.g., because an integrated circuit chip that meets a relatively high reliability specification is typically more expensive than an integrated circuit chip with the same design that meets relatively low reliability specification).